RVP hit by injury KO

Arsenal have been dealt a blow with the news that Robin Van Persie faces up to three months on the sidelines after reportedly tearing ankle ligaments during Holland’s friendly international against Italy last night.

The 26 year old forward was the subject of a heavy challenge from Giorgio Chiellini and left the field on a stretcher after just 16 minutes of the game in Pescara.

“The first diagnosis is a bad ankle injury,” said coach Bert van Marwijk after the game:

“We are waiting for X-rays in hospital. It’s terrible for Robin and is not good for Holland or his club.”

The news comes at a bad time for the Gunners who have been in superb form recently, thanks in large part to the performances of Van Persie.

Author Info

Neil Sherwin

Co-editor of BackPageFootball.com. Writes mostly on Premier League, A-League and MLS with contributions to other sites including TheFootballSack, InBedWithMaradona and Bloomberg's BSports. Has featured on The Guardian's Football Weekly.